1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for removing the hulls from nuts, and more particularly but not by way of limitation, to such apparatus for removing the outer hulls or shucks, commonly known as sticktights, from pecans.
2. Description of Prior Art
Typically, if a pecan is permitted to remain on a tree until it falls naturally, it will fall without its outer shuck. However, for various reasons, pecans often fall from the tree with its green outer hull or shuck still attached to the pecan. In the pecan harvesting industry, pecan growers generally shake the trees so that pecans fall prior to the time they would have fallen naturally. Therefore, many pecans are still enclosed in the green shuck. Additionally, minor insect or fungus damage to the shuck can prevent the shuck from opening properly. Thus, many good pecans which can contribute to a successful harvest are picked up still in the shuck. It is therefore important to remove the shucks from as many pecans as possible.
Typical prior art dehulling apparatus utilize a rotating brush to scrub pecans still in the shuck across a fixed sheet of expanded metal grating. Other dehullers utilize conveyor belts which carry pecans past a stationary scrubbing brush. Such a configuration allows a very short brush/nut contact time. Although such conventional dehullers capably remove the hulls from some pecans, many otherwise harvestable pecans remain in the shuck.